Cooking on a Budget: Recipes and Tips

Whether you have to eat gluten free or lactose free or simply want to eat healthier, it doesn't have to cost a fortune. On the following pages you'll find recipes, tips, advice, and food reviews to help you feed your family great meals without spending a fortune.

Given the fact that I have a food blog and talk about food without even taking a breath, you probably already know that I love to cook. In fact, I enjoy it so much that I stare in blank amazement when people say they don’t enjoy cooking.

Having said that, on the hottest days (and nights) of summer, I appreciate a quick, easy, and no oven required meal. These tostadas are so quick and easy to pull together and there are endless options to “make them your own.” They’re also great for eating on a budget – especially if you make them meatless.

The Toppings Are Your Call:

Refried Beans or Ground Beef w/Taco Seasoning

Cilantro

Shredded Cheddar

Mexican Crumbling Cheese

Green Onions

Shallots

Shredded Lettuce

Jalapeno Peppers

Chiles

Tomatoes

Pico de Gallo

Sour Cream

Salsa

Salsa Verde

Black Olives

Lime Juice

Roasted Corn

Roasted Red Peppers

Etc…

The NON-Recipe for Refried Beans Tostadas

There’s No Need to Even Heat These Tostadas

It all starts with the base: the Tostada shells. I love the Guerrero Tostadas pictured above. They’re delicious and ridiculously inexpensive. That’s a combination I don’t take lightly.

Line a baking sheet (or several) with the number of tostadas you’ll be serving. There’s no need to heat the shells at all for tostadas.

Refried Beans: I use canned refried beans and am pretty darn brand-loyal. I buy Old El Paso Traditional Refried Beans almost exclusively. For 10 tostadas, I used two cans. Now you can use refried beans straight from the can for this recipe or to serve as is. However, I love to add a little water (couple of tablespoons) to the beans when I first add them to the skillet, along with about 1/2 tsp of cumin and a splash of hot sauce. In full disclosure, I add cumin to more things than not. In this particular dish, I also added 1/2 cup of sour cream to the beans. It makes them creamier and dreamier.

Cook the beans on low, stirring frequently. Season with a little salt.

Make Some with Avocado and Some Without: Just In Case Someone Isn’t a Fan

When the beans are nice and hot, plop them evenly among the tostada shells, spreading them to the edges. Top the hot beans with shredded cheddar cheese so it’ll melt irresistibly into them.

Now this is where you can really get cute. Add whatever floats your boat at this point. Cilantro, shredded lettuce, tomatoes, black olives, scallions, shallots… you do you!

I add different toppings just about every time I make tostadas but the cast of characters almost always includes cilantro, shredded lettuce, tomatoes, sour cream, cheese, and avocado.

You’ll want to put the sour cream on top, if for no other reason than it looks cool. Finally, the thing that really seals the deal? Squeeze a little lime juice over the whole shebang.

I’m not sure why, exactly, but lime juice simply makes every single Mexican dish you can think of even better.

If you don’t have avocados on hand, you can serve this delicious tuna salad in leaf bowls, in a hollowed-out tomato, on toast, or even in grooves of celery sticks. You could, of course, go old school and serve it on toast…. do you have any idea how delicious StarKist tuna salad on toast sounds right about now??

The recipe below is out of this world – since I’m deathly (literally, it seems) allergic to mangoes, I leave them out. I replace them with chopped green grapes. For whatever reasons, grapes and tuna fish make the perfect pair. Then again, as far as I know, mangoes and tuna fish do too – you’ll have to try and let me know!

In a medium bowl mix mayonnaise and chipotle pepper well. Add tuna, jicama and diced mango and mix well.
Cut avocados in half and remove seed. Hollow out slightly if needed.
Place tuna salad in avocado half and sprinkle with a little fresh lime juice and chopped cilantro. Place on lettuce-lined plate with mango slices as a garnish.

We have Taco Tuesdays in our house – I’m not sure why Tuesday was selected but I suspect it was because it sounded good… “Taco Tuesday.” You’d be amazed at the number of decisions I make in my life for simple reasons like this. Taco nights are inexpensive as well as delicious – another reason they’re a weekly guest in my kitchen.

The delicious recipe below is quick, easy, and won’t heat up your kitchen, so it was love at first sight when I saw it.

Tuna is uncommonly healthy and delicious – I work it into as many meals as possible. My favorite is to make tuna fish salad and place it in endive cups or celery sticks but tuna tacos has become something I love just as much.

The recipe below is from StarKist – a name synonymous with tuna. The tacos are fresh and delicious and… you’ll love this… they’re Charlie approved!

When I was sent the recipe for Creamy Salsa Dip – created by Chef Anthony Stewart from Pritikin Longevity Center + Spa – I rounded up the ingredients immediately. I knew this was something I had to make immediately.

I am a dip fanatic and anything that calls for both sour cream AND green onions is something I have to have in my life.

This creamy and delicious dip has a lot going on for it. For one thing, most of us already have the ingredients on hand. I only had to grab fresh sour cream because Christmas Day had confiscated every container I owned.

I also love that it’s inexpensive to make – as in very inexpensive. Post-Christmas shopping, we could all use that, right?!

The best thing about the dip, however, is the taste. It is outrageously delicious. I served mine with Glutino Crackers and Veggie Chips. When I break it out for football on TV later, I’ll serve vegetables with it.

After I made one batch and tasted it… I made another right away. It’s THAT yummy.

I’m sure you’re as familiar with the high cost of groceries as I am. Each trip to the grocery store leaves me staring at prices, waiting for the punchline. Seriously? $5 for a tub of Crisco? Shouldn’t that come with a whole chicken or a pan to fry it in?

Since I’m not the proud owner of a money tree, I’ve always had to operate within a set budget when it comes to grocery shopping. I’ll let you in on a secret – if I didn’t have a budget for grocery shopping, I’d make a perfect fool of myself. I LOVE grocery shopping, cooking, eating… the whole shebang.. and I tend to get very carried away when planning meals, snacks, and desserts.

It’s been this way since I can remember, but it has been even more of a problem since I became a food blogger. Now, I want to cook all the things, test all the things, and enjoy all the things! Sadly, all the things cost money. Some more so than others.

A set budget reigns me in, thereby ensuring that we are still able to have water, electricity, and silly things like that.

Oddly, enough, before I had to start eating gluten free, I honestly had no idea what a high grocery bill was. Everything is more expensive when you have to buy gluten free – it’s just something that we all come to expect. A part of the gluten free life, if you will.

It can also be pretty expensive to eat healthy. Grass fed beef, butter from cows who’ve been feeding on grass, organic vegetables and fruit, salmon, shrimp… the list goes on – right along with the dollar signs.

Below, I wanted to share a beautiful infographic with you – it has healthy eating on a budget on its mind, too. But before we get to the infographic, I’ll give you a few tricks I’ve picked up over the years – they’re applicable for saving money when you’re trying to eat healthy AND for when you have to eat gluten free.

Check your grocery store’s circular and, if possible, plan your meals around what’s on sale that week. If there’s a great deal on chicken – chicken it is. Is cauliflower (finally!) on sale? Work in cauliflower rice, mashed cauliflower, or roasted cauliflower.

Never allow leftovers to go to waste. If you have leftover chicken, use it for chicken tacos. Leftover ham? Omelets! Leftovers also come in handy when it comes to stews, salads, soups, and casseroles.

When you get in the swing of using leftovers, you’ll find it helpful to always keeping taco shells, tomato juice, eggs, and broths on hand.

Keep an eye on coupons in the Sunday paper. They aren’t always that great, but every now and then, you can find some real beauts.

Check brands’ websites for coupons.

If there’s a brand you use frequently (for me a few would be Bob’s Red Mill, Amy’s Kitchen, CedarLane, McCormick Spices….), subscribe to their website’s newsletter, if one is available. In addition to great recipes, they also include the occasional coupon.

If Kroger has “some” things cheaper and Meijer’s has “some” things cheaper, take the extra time and hit both stores. Not only do I often divide my grocery shopping between two stores, I often throw Wal-Mart and Target into the mix as well. I will, literally, go the extra mile for a bargain.

Ibotta, Ibotta, Ibotta. I LOVE Ibotta! It’s an app that, basically, pays you money for shopping. As you’d suspect, it’s a favorite app in my world. Click through the link to read more about the wonderful program or go ahead and download the app. If you join now (totally free to join, totally free to download the app), you could have some extra money in time for Christmas shopping! I use mine for Christmas and it comes in so handy! When you sign up, if you use this REFERRAL CODE: iyjbib I’ll get credit for pointing you in the right direction and you will make my day by doing so. You’re going to love Ibotta as much as I do. I just saw on Ibotta’s Twitter account that, for a limited time, if you join Ibotta you’ll get a $10 welcome bonus. That is all the way amazing!

I think I could eat grits at every meal – there’s just something so comforting and “right” about enjoying a hot bowl of grit deliciousness. When it comes to eating grits (whether it’s breakfast or supper), the options are fairly endless….

The quick and easy Monday Morning Cheese Grits recipe below is my Weekday Morning “go to recipe” – I love them any day of the week, of course, but on Monday mornings, I reallllly sing their praises. So quick. So simple. So easy.

Let me preface all of this by saying that one of the first things I ever learned to cook (at the wise old age of 19) was mashed potatoes. They were a favorite food, and when I got married and moved out of my mom and dad’s and in with my husband (seemed like the thing to do, you know?), I realized that if I wanted “mashed potatoes like mom makes,” I’d better learn to make them.

So I did.

I’ve always made mashed potatoes from real life, honest to goodness potatoes straight from the bag. If I do say so, myself, and I do… my mashed potatoes are the best there is. Whether I make them traditionally or get jazzy with sour cream, cream cheese, garlic, and/or chives…. I make a mean pan of mashed potatoes.

So, there you have it. I know how to make mashed potatoes and even love to make them. When I’m making mashed potatoes as a side dish for holidays or for weeknight dinners, I break out my potato peeler and have at it the old-fashioned way.

Instant Mashed Potatoes are as simple as pouring the package into a pan of boiling water and stirring with a fork. Fast. Easy. Delicious. Yes, delicious. Sometimes you’ve put together a great meal and realize that “a little something extra” would be nice. Within minutes, you can have just that.

Instant Mashed Potatoes come in a HUGE variety of flavors and styles… I mean HUGE. I always grab a couple of different flavors.

Any type of stew and most soups are fantastic served over a bowl of mashed potatoes. Here’s the story behind the picture above: I had made a big Sunday Crock-Pot of Ground Beef/Italian Sausage Stew. We’d had a few bowls at lunchtime and I knew we’d be having more at supper. I wanted to add a little something extra to the situation, so I had made some garlic-flavored instant mashed potatoes and served our stew on top. It was so freaking delicious that I don’t wait for “leftovers” or “second-helpings” anymore, I make up a batch or two right off the bat. It’s the quickest way imaginable to add a little extra flavor and fun to a meal.

Ever had a KFC Bowl – mashed potatoes, gravy, chicken, corn, and cheese? Instant mashed potatoes help you pull together something similar almost instantly. Vegetarians could use mushroom gravy and “soy” chicken or simply go without the chicken altogether.

They’re, honestly, good enough to serve with any meal you put together.

Instant mashed potatoes are excellent to have on hand when you feel a little under the weather or are simply tired after a particularly grueling day. Trust me, you’ll find yourself singing your own praises when you’re trying to pull something together quickly and easily and you spy a few packets on the shelf. I was hit once with an allergy attack from hell and may or may not have called myself a “freaking genius” when I remembered I had a few packages of garlic mashed potatoes on hand. The freaking genius paired them with chicken strips and sweet corn and had supper on the table inside of 20 minutes and me back on the couch in a Benadryl stupor in no time.

Once you start looking for things to put on your instant mashed potatoes, you’ll be amazed at how many options there are. We all use rice frequently for “bowls,” right? It’s been my experience that instant mashed potatoes can serve as the same type of foundation for quick, easy, and downright delicious meals.

A few years ago, my oldest daughter Emily and I both had to give up gluten and wheat for health reasons. Truth be told, we actually handled the upheaval remarkably well because….

We’re laid back gals and it takes more than being cut off from Filet of Fish Sandwiches and even doughnuts to rattle us.

We’re acutely aware that a lot of people deal with much worse things than this.

Frankly, we were just glad to feel good again!

Having said all of that, we do occasionally commiserate over the cost of gluten free food. I simply have no idea why my body decided to take this route. She’s aware of my grocery budget…. and yet, she decided to turn down this road anyway.

I do not in any way claim to have all of the answers when it comes to budgeting ANYTHING, let alone groceries, but I have (through trial and error and error and error) discovered a few things.

As always, if you have to eat gluten free, always check the food item for a certified “Gluten Free” label.

This tip holds true whether you have to eat gluten free or not – When using ground beef in recipes, replace half the meat with vegetables. Usually a mixture of onion, garlic, green peppers, and/or celery does the trick. You take out unnecessary fat and replace it with something better and cheaper.

Master the art of cooking great rice, beans, salads, soups, and stews. They’re great at stretching your dollar and the possibilities are endless. You can use whatever produce/meat are on sale that particular week.

This is a tip from Emily: Breakfast meals are almost always cheap! When she told me that one day, I got to thinking and discovered just how right she was. Eggs, bacon (or sausage), French Toast, pancakes, fried potatoes, grits, oatmeal, waffles.. they’re all very budget-friendly, even if you have to eat the gluten free version of each. Start a tradition of having breakfast style dinners at least once a week. They’re as delicious as they are inexpensive, so you might want to even aim for two or three nights. The French Toast pictured at the top was thoroughly enjoyed for supper one night along with bacon and a fruit salad. Insanely inexpensive and insanely good.

Check the circulars each week – plan your meals around the best deals.

Coupons aren’t what they used to be, but they’re still worth having on hand – just in case.

Have you ever heard of Ibotta? It’s actually pretty cool. Download the Ibotta app on your iPhone and find out (quickly and easily) how you can start getting money back on select items from grocery stores and department stores. When planning my meals, I take the current “promotions” on Ibotta into consideration along with the specials in the circular. I use the money I get back from Ibotta for extra money for Christmas and birthdays. Having extra money when you need it most is all kinds of cool. My referral code for Ibotta is iyjbib.

Beware of the food items that tout being Gluten Free and take this label as an excuse to charge you more. I’ve seen a few extracts, seasonings, and soups pull this trick. Before falling for something in the “Gluten Free” aisle, check the inner aisles of your grocery store. Many foods are naturally gluten free – there’s just no reason to pay a couple of dollars more because the words Gluten Free are written bigger.

Don’t forget about good old Wal-Mart! I’ve found some ridiculously good deals on gluten free food at Wal-Mart. As far as that goes, I once found a killer buy on Bob’s Red Mill Gluten Free mixes at Big Lots of all places. Be sure to check there as well. It’s worth driving around to find the best deals.

I’m obsessive when it comes to checking dates on food items in the grocery store, but I’m especially obsessive when it comes to gluten free foods. The last thing you want to do is pay good money for a gluten free cookie dough, pie crust, or pizza crust just to get it home and discover you’d wasted your money. Been there, done that, and it’s why I’m obsessive these days.

Read food reviews and gluten free food reviews. Again, wasting money isn’t much fun – read reviews before you pay for something that’s disappointing. If you can’t find a review for something in particular, contact a food blogger (such as myself) and ask them if they’ve ever tried it.

Amazon is a fantastic place to try new gluten free food products. I’m not going to pretend that they’re ALL inexpensive, but there is a huge, huge, huge assortment of gluten free food to choose from. [See: Gluten Free Food on Amazon]

Make a list of your favorite Gluten Free Food companies and visit their websites. Most have newsletters you can sign up for. These newsletters often include coupons, sample offers, and rebates. They’re more than worth the time it takes to sign up.

Cereal is a great, usually healthy, and inexpensive food to have on hand for kids and adults. Before you pay more money for “Gluten Free” cereals in the health food section, check the good old cereal aisle – a lot of favorites are already gluten free.

This is a tip that I, personally, do not yet follow. However, a lot of people do and they swear by it – Buying in Bulk from Club Stores (Sam’s Club, Costco, BJ’s..). While I do love the idea of stocking up and cutting back on the number of times you go to the grocery store (since we inevitably spend more than necessary when we go frequently), I simply have not joined a club store. After reading a few articles recently, it’s something I’m now thinking about. See Buy and Save in Gluten Free Bulk and Gluten Free Food at Club Stores.

Krusteaz and Pillsbury both now have exceptional gluten free flours (I’ve only seen them in the traditional flour and baking aisles). They’re quite a bit cheaper than the rest and I’ve had nothing but wonderful experiences with each.

Speaking of Pillsbury, I’m thrilled that they’ve entered the gluten free arena because their products are excellent and A LOT less expensive than the rest. They don’t have a lot of flavors or varieties out yet (I’m seriously hoping they’ll make more), but their boxes of gluten free cake mix and their gluten free cookie mix make TWICE as much as others on the market and they cost less. I’m hoping they’ll influence the others to find ways to come down in price.

If you have the space and time, growing your own herbs, vegetables, and even fruit isn’t just a fun hobby, it’s an economical one. Those who grow a great deal of their own food, then freeze or can their produce are way ahead of the game. When I was growing up, my grandmother and grandfather had a huge garden. She canned beans, pickles, green tomato relish, cauliflower, etc. and froze just about every other vegetable you can imagine. She had a large freezer in her basement that was always full. Grocery trips, for her, were few and far between and, when she did go… they didn’t leave a bruise on her pocketbook.

Look for alternatives to pricey ingredients. If you’re making a recipe for something you saw your favorite chef make on the Food Network but don’t have his/her budget, look for alternatives. Either use your own imagination or search for “alternatives to saffron (or whatever pricey ingredient you’re taking exception with).”

Finally, keep in mind that the main thing when planning meals is to strike a healthy balance of vitamins and nutrients and the healthiest things, generally speaking, aren’t the most expensive things. A great tossed salad and piece of grilled chicken will leave you just as full as a more expensive meal.

When I had to give up gluten and wheat, I knew very well what one of my most painful losses would be – Jalapeno Poppers from Arby’s. I’ve been addicted to them since they first came out.

Truth is, I was always beyond obsessed with Arby’s in every way possible – unfortunately I haven’t been able to eat at one for over a year and a half (they’re surprisingly one of the worst restaurants at providing gluten free options).

Anyway, I’ve now come up with a couple of ways to satisfy my cravings. I could conceivably fry stuffed jalapeno peppers, using gluten free flour and cornmeal – and they’d be fantastic – but my favorite way to satisfy that delicious cream cheese meets jalapeno heat craving is simply to bake them.

It’s easy, delicious, and much healthier than frying them.

Jalapenos and Sargento Medium Asiago “Tastings”

This isn’t any sort of product placement or plug, I just simply LOVE Sargento’s “Tastings” and highly recommend them. They’re the ideal size for keeping on hand in the refrigerator. I always use them up without any being wasted. I always have Asiago and Parmesan in the fridge and mix it up with other varieties as well.

I also list Philadelphia Cream Cheese in the ingredients below – again, I’m not trying to sound like a commercial. It’s simply one of the brands I’m insanely loyal to.

These stuffed jalapeno peppers make delicious appetizers and would be beautiful for game day, Christmas, or any time you want a little pop and personality with your meal.

Fill the peppers with the cheese mixture and arrange on a baking sheet. As you can see in the picture at the top, I use Parchment Paper Pre-Cut Baking Sheets (something I’ve fallen completely in love with – they make clean up SO much easier) – but you can certainly make these without parchment paper.

Bake 15 minutes.

I served mine with Sweet Chili Sauce and never regretted the decision for a single second. However, they are outrageously delicious on their own and don’t require any sauce.

There are countless reasons to love this Gluten Free Mexican Pizzas recipe – they’re quick, easy, and very inexpensive to make. I also love the fact that they’re ideal to make for just about anyone – because, while they’re gluten free and vegetarian, anyone and everyone loves them.

You can make these pizzas in the oven OR on the stove, in a skillet. The latter’s pretty convenient in the summer months if you don’t want to heat up your kitchen. I’ve made these both ways and honestly don’t have a clear-cut favorite. I will say this, though, for whatever reasons, using a skillet seems to draw out more of the delicious corn flavor from the tortillas.

If you’re using an oven, preheat it to 400 degrees.

In a small bowl, combine the beans, chiles and spices. you could also throw in a little diced jalapeno if you’re brave enough.

Oven Method: Place tortillas on a large baking sheet. Spread with the bean mixture, to within 1/2 of the edges. Top with another tortilla, gently pressing down. Spoon Pace Picante Sauce or salsa over the top, then sprinkle with cheese and your favorite toppings. Bake at 400 for 10 – 15 minutes or until cheese is melted.

Stove Top: Toast tortillas (two at a time, side by side) in a skillet. Spread one of them with the bean mixture and top with second toasted tortilla. Spoon Picante Sauce or salsa over the top and sprinkle with cheese and your toppings. Put each pizza back on the skillet cover, and heat on low until cheese is melted.

Use a pizza cutter to cut each pizzas into fourths. Serve with a salad or tortilla chips and you have a quick, easy, budget-friendly, and delicious meal.

Picante Sauce or Salsa? Either is delicious – but I’m a sucker for Picante Sauce for the simple fact that it’s sweeter. I actually prefer to mix things up and alternate between Picante and salsa.

Toppings: Use however much or however little you want – you call the shots. My favorite toppings for these pizzas are black olives and green onions but feel free to use any type of pepper that catches your eye. Finely shredded lettuce, finely chopped tomatoes and a dollop of sour cream are also great additions after the pizzas have come out of the oven or off of the stove.